Helping Hermione
by Bittersweet x
Summary: Missing Moment-In the sixth book, Hermione comes out of the girls' bathroom, after Ron  the Git  teases her, with Luna "patting her vaguely on the back." This is what happened. Luna's point of view, of course.


Helping Hermione

_**Missing Moment-**_**In the sixth book, Hermione comes out of the girls' bathroom, after Ron [the Git] teases her, with Luna "patting her vaguely on the back." This is what happened. Luna's point of view, of course.**

**Oh, and I don't own anything.**

–

I was in the middle of Defense Against the Dark Arts class, watching with fascination at a tiny spider that was scuttling over the desk in small patterns as Professor Snape spoke rapidly of the Cruciatus Curse. It was a very unpleasant topic, and therefore I chose to ignore him.

A not very good choice, as it turned out.

Left, right, the spider went. Left. Right. _Jump. _Right. Left. Left. Right—

"..And is there any countercurse? Anyone? Tut, tut..Lovegood?"

I looked up with a start from the spider, which was in the midst of a jump. "Yes, Professor Snape?" I replied politely.

Snape smirked. "Incorrect. There most certainly is not a countercurse..ten points from Ravenclaw.."

I stared at him for a few moments, bewildered. "Ah..what, sir?"

His smirk grew broader. "Tut, tut..cheek will not be tolerated..detention, Lovegood..tonight, my office, seven o'clock."

I looked at my friend Ginny, who happened to share that class with me, in utter bewilderment. She looked at me quite sympathetically, and I murmured _"What did I do?"_

Out of the corner of her mouth, she murmured back, "He asked you if there was a countercurse to Crucio, and when you said yes, there isn't. so.." She sighed. "Ack, he's such an unfair git!"

"Oh," I said to myself. "Oh, dear.."

I held to my quill quite tightly, as I always did when I was slightly upset. More than anything I hate detention with Professor Snape. His office is _clearly_ full of Nargles.

_Crunch._

I had squeezed too tight. Blue ink slopped messily over my robes. Ginny looked at me with extreme sympathy again, and silently passed me a bunch of tissues. I attempted to disperse of the ink, but it was not coming off, and I didn't know that spell to siphon it all off at once.

Once again, Snape looked at me and smirked. I wondered vaguely whether his mouth was being played with by Nargles..there are so many in his office. "Tut, _tut.._"

I wondered if he ever said anything else, like "Hi!" or "Happy birthday!" or "I love cats!" or "Jet-packs!". He didn't speak a word about excusing me, instead went back to lecturing. I quietly stood up and slid out of the room. Snape noticed, but he did not make a move to stop me.

I walked into the girls' room leisurely. No one was in the corridors, and everyone was immersed in classes, so they were probably not in the girls' room, either, and anyways, no one goes into Myrtle's loo. Therefore, no one was around to observe my _very _blue robes.

When I reached the bathroom, I heard loud, racking sobs. "Oh dear," I murmured. "Poor little Myrtle.."

I pushed inside the stall doors. "Myrtle?" I called. "Are you all right? It's me, Luna."

The sobs were stifled instantly. "Go away," came a familiar but curiously miserable voice from the back of the bathroom.

"Hermione?" I called. "Is that you, Hermione? Are you all right? Should I get Professor McGonagall?"

"_No! _Don't get McGonagall, DON'T! I mean..no, I'm — I'm fine. Please, Luna, please just leave me alone, I'm all right..."

I stubbornly persisted. "Hermione," I said patiently, "you were crying..did the Humdiginbers get you?"

"Wha — _no! _Please, Luna, just go away, just go away.."

It was time to get involved in this, I decided. Humdiginbers could get quite dangerous if not properly dealt with. They robbed one of imagination, and if you didn't act fast, you would just be a shriveled up piece of boring with no imagination. That _couldn't _happen to Hermione.

I walked to the back of the loos and found quite a sad sight in front of me.

Hermione, looking _much _smaller and meeker without her many books, was knelt over the back sink, tears rolling down her face. Her eyes were a splotchy red, and her hair was quite askew. Her hat was lying on the ground, where it had apparently fallen. Her entire body was quite limp, shoulders shaking slightly.

I knelt down next to Hermione and gently hugged her. "Oh, Hermione," I murmured as she rose slightly, then sunk back onto the ground. "If it wasn't Humdiginbers, what was it?"

Hermione choked slightly. "It was something much worse than Humwhatevers, Luna," she sighed, tears still streaming down her face, leaning back on her heels. "It was Ron."

"Ronald?" I asked, mildly interested. "I thought you liked him.."

"I do, Luna, that's the — that's the problem," Hermione managed to say. "He's been seeing Lavender.."

"Well, of course he's been seeing her, she's in your house," I reminded Hermione gently. Nargles that had been tampering with her mind.

"What?" asked Hermione, looking thoroughly confused. Then she almost laughed. But not quite. "N — no, Luna, I mean..I mean socially. You know. They've been... _dating_."

She had an extremely bitter note in her last word.

"Ah," I whispered. "Yes, I saw him..with her the other day." I thought back. "He was all clawed up..as if birds had attacked him.."

Was it my imagination, or did Hermione blush a bit? Ah, well..probably just the Babbity Boblops's tricks. She was still looking perfectly miserable.

"And — and..well, I guess it's not exactly a secret that I'm.." she hesitated. "_fond _of Ronald."

I nodded. "Yes, you are his best friend."

"No, Luna, I mean..I mean..I mean I really _like like _him." She was definitely blushing now, fiery red. "_You _know."

My large eyes widened. "Ohh," I whispered. "No..I didn't know that."

Hermione smiled slightly. "The rest of the school did."

I pondered this while Hermione went on.

"And — you know — we were going to Slughorn's Christmas party together and everything. And he knew — at least, I think he knew — that I liked him. And thenso suddenly, he's dating Lavender?" She sighed. "It's like he had absolutely no regard for what I thought. And that..that really hurt me. I know he's his own person and can do whatever he likes, but then..it's so _sudden, _and — after he..oh, Luna.."

And she began to cry again, her entire small body shaking with sobs. I was quite surprised. Hermione never cried.

I hugged Hermione again. "Hermione, don't cry, please don't cry..it'll be all right, Hermione, I promise. Ron will come around."

"And he made fun of me," Hermione gulped. "He laughed..he mimicked me. It's just such a..such a thing I would expect Malfoy to do. But Ron? Ron is my best friend. Ronis supposed to stand up for me when people do that, not _do _it! Even if he wasn't dating Lavender, that would've hurt me. He's my _best friend!"_

"That is dreadful," I agreed. "But perhaps he's been infected by Nargles?"

Hermione shook her head. "I don't think so.."

I shrugged. "In any case, Hermione, he likes you far too much to stay with Lavender too long.. he likes you very much."

Hermione sighed a great shuddering sigh. "Oh, Luna, I don't think so."

"Hermione," I said patiently, "he likes you _very _much. It's been quite obvious..don't you remember, in my first year, when Ginny was accidentally Petrifying all those people, and she got you..well, you don't know, of course, but I saw Ron around the halls in those days, and he was perfectly miserable. He could barely speak. He likes you very very _very _much."

Hermione went a faint shade of pink. "Do you think so?"

I nodded. "Why yes, I do. And Idoubt he'll make fun of you anymore, either.."

"Thanks, Luna." Hermione glanced at my robes. "Oh dear..what happened?"

I sighed. "Professor Snape was being unfair, and I accidentally crunched my quill, and now.." I gestured to my spoiled robes.

Hermione murmured _"Tergeo"_ and began siphoning the ink off with her wand.

I smiled. "Oh, thank you _so _much, Hermione!"

Hermione smiled faintly. "No, Luna. Thank _you_."


End file.
